Abstract

Mount
Nimba is one of the most famous sites for biodiversity conservation in West
Africa and has been identified as a priority Hotspot for conservation. In
Liberia, the iron ore that constitutes the mountain body is exploited by
ArcelorMittal Company. In the framework of its impact assessment process,
bushmeat study in its mining concession was conducted by Sylvatrop. Surveys
ofdifferent persons involved in
bushmeatindustry and hunting
activity monitoring in northernNimbaCounty have been realized during eleven months.

The
results presented in this paper provide a first understanding of the
Marketing channel ofhunting
products in this region.The hunting activities are mainly
dedicated to feeding the hunter’s family but commercial bushmeat activities
are also important in the area both at the hunter community level and at the
regional level. All kinds of animals are considered to be potential prey
except sometimes those which are hard to find or too dangerous to hunt
(buffalos, panthers…). Most of the caught game appears to be Rodents and
forest Antelopes. The actors involving in the bushmeat industry in Northern
Nimba County are hHunter/farmer, rural
and urban households, intermediaries, sellers of bushmeat in markets and in
restaurants. Hunters sell their in their community towns, in the cities’
market and restaurants but transboundery bushmeat trade also exist between
the three countries that share the Nimba range (Guinea, Liberia and Côte
d’Ivoire).

Key words: bushmeat, hunter, market, seller, trade, trans-boundary

Introduction

Nimba
County, in the north east of Liberia is located in the Western part of the
Upper Guinea Ecoregion which extends from Sierra Leone to the Sassandra
River in Côte d’Ivoire. This sub-region supports several endemic Mammals
species and subspecies, unfortunately, this region hotspot is one of the
most critically fragmented on the planet. Much of the remaining forest is
exploited for timber or threatened by hunting and does not represent intact
habitat (McGinley 2008).

The ArcelorMital Company has obtained authorization from the Liberian
government, to exploit the iron ore deposits in Nimba County, near Mount
Nimba in. To be in compliance with Liberian law, ArceloMital should conduct
an environmental impact study before implementing its mining operations.
Thus, biological
preliminary assessments implemented by AML were characterized by ecological
baselines and provided a reliable basis for biodiversity impact assessments.
It known that large-scale mining for iron ore, diamonds, gold, and bauxite,
particularly in mountain areas, and small-scale mining for gold and diamonds
also pose a major threat to the forests and biodiversity. Furthermore, these
practices introduced populations further stress the forest resources through
hunting of wild animals, particularly antelope and primates (Sery et al
2006, 2008, Lauginie 2007). Preliminary ecological baseline study commended
by ArcelorMittal in 2009 revealed that communities around and inside of the
concession are reliant on bushmeat as food source and income.

Indeed, bushmeat utilization is currently one of the most important
conservation challenges in the moist tropical forest region of Africa, from
West Africa’s Guinean forest hotspot to the wilderness area of Central
Africa. In 1993 publication entitled African Biodiversity laid out
the extraordinary dependence of Africans on locally available biological
resources for food, medicine, and materials for shelter. Indeed, hunting and
bushmeat utilization have been an integral part of traditional human
livelihood throughout Africa for generations (Mendelson et al 2003).
Although the bushmeat crisis has been and is still being brought to light in
numerous publications across the continent and throughout the world, the
development of appropriate and practical solutions remains hampered by a
limited understanding and treatment of the underlying complexities involved
in the commercial bushmeat trade (Bowen-Jones
1998, 2002, Mohamed et al 2002). Wildlife harvest rates for subsistence use
and the commercial bushmeat trade may represent a threat to the maintenance
of biodiversity (Bowen-Jones and Pendry 1999).

In
Liberia, the civil conflict from 1989 to 2003, and the resulting collapse of
the national economy, may have promoted the expansion of the wildlife
harvest. Hunters take their catch directly to a local or urban market.
Transporters (bush taxis, logging trucks, and government and NGO vehicles)
serve as links in the commodity chain between the hunter and marketer. A
strategy to control bushmeat hunting is therefore considered urgently
necessary by ecologists. However, a coherent bushmeat hunting mitigation
strategy needs to include specific measures that can only be developed using
detailed information collected during a medium to long term survey. This
would establish, as far as possible, the current baseline level of hunting
and the territories used by different communities (Bene and Dufour, person
commun; Bene et al submitted). It is considered important to look at this
aspect of rural livelihoods in northern Nimba County as future mining
activities may cause hunters to lose access to current hunting areas, or
push hunting activities into adjacent protected areas. The aim of this study
was to determine the bushmeat commercialization in the northern Nimba
County.

Method

Nimba
County is situated in the Northeastern part of Liberia and shares borders
with the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire in the East, and the Republic of Guinea
in the Northwest. Nimba is also bordered by the counties of Bong, Grand
Bassa, River Cess, Sinoe and Grand Geddeh. Sanniquellie serves as the
capital. As of the 2008 Census, it had a population of 462,026, making it
the second most populous county in Liberia. Nimba County is inhabited
predominantly by two ethnic groups, the Mano speaking people and the
Dan speaking people. The Mandingos or Malinky or Manding people, who
were late arrivers in the region, make up the third group but are smaller in
number than either one of the two major groups. In the
northern Nimba County,six localities (Bonlah,
Yekepa,Gbapa,
Zolowee, ZortapaandSanniquellie) have
constituted ​​thestudy sites
(figure 1).Itthen
extendedto towns and
villages in Guinea,when werealized across-border tradein bushmeatbetween the threecountries that sharethe chain ofNimbanamelyGuinea,Côted'Ivoire andLiberia.

Bushmeat is primarily intended for family consumption. However, sometimes
the hunters sell some parts for money. In these cases, the parts sold are
mainly the shoulder and thigh together, legs only or the whole animal. The
meat is sold in the market of the hunter’s community and then to towns that
are easily accessible by the hunter.
The meat is sold either fresh or smoked. Two town markets have been
distinguished, Yekepa and Sanniquellie markets. The Sanniquellie market
takes place every Saturday but there is not a specific market day for Yekepa
where only two women are involved in this activity with only a little meat
from time to time.
As shown in Figure 2, a total of nine (09)
markets were identified as the places where the hunters sell their game. It
is noted that the sale of game is also beyond the Liberian border in this
case in Guinea.
The markets: Sanniquellie (23%), Gbapa (11%), Bonlah (21%) and Zortapa (16%)
recorded high rates of game sales
followed by Zolowee (14%), Yekepa (7%), Lugbehyee (6%),
Zorgowee (1%) and Guinea
(1%).

Figure 2:
Different market where the hunters surveyed sell their game and
selling frequencies

We visited the weekly market of Sanniquellie to gather information on places
where sellers purchase their bushmeat. Surveys have been made also in Yekepa
market for the same purpose. Analysis of these data, as presented in figure
3, shows that at least 20 different towns in the region supply Sanniquellie
market in bushmeat. Meat, which occurs at that market, also comes from
Guinea and represents a rate of about 16%, and even the Upper Guinea
(north-east of Guinea). The town which has delivered the most bushmeat is
Sarklepia with 23%, then Tapeta with 21%. Among these towns three are part
of our study: Gbapa (6%), Zortapa (2%) and Zolowee (2%). The survey in
Yekepa market shows that 95% of the meat registered during the study is
coming from Guinea.

As described in table 1, most of the animals found on the market are
represented by ungulates with about 75%, then rodents with 15%, primates
(8%) and finally the carnivores with low rate. At the species level
Maxwell's duiker (29.45%) and Bay duiker (29.11%) are the game mostly
encountered. The first rodent encountered,
brush-tailed porcupine
appears in the third place at 5.82% that have the same rate like the
Common warthog,
then the
cane rat with 5.48% sharing the same rate with
the Bushbuck. Primates are represented by five
species (Mangabey
3.03%, Campbell's monkey 2.74%, Lesser spot-nose 1.37%, Baboon 0.68% and
Diana monkey 0.34%)
that are at the bottom of the table with lower frequencies. In Yekepa market
95% of the meat registered is composed of Suidae coming from Guinea. Only
one Primate species coming from Yekepa town has been recorded during the
study.

Table 1:
Animal species listed in Sanniquellie bushmeat market

Order

Scientific name

English name

Local name

Number

Encounter frequency

Supply frequency

Rodentia

Tryonomys swinderianus

Marsh cane rat

Sobeh

16

5,48

++++

Artherurus africanus

Brush-tailed porcupine

The

17

5,82

++++

Cricetomys gambianus

Giant pouched rats

Bonon

7

2,40

+++

Cricetomys emini

Giant pouched rats

Bonon

3

1,03

+

Artiodactyla

Cephalophus dorsalis

Bay duiker

Belleh

85

29,11

+++++

Cephalophus maxwelli

Maxwell's duiker

Velleh

86

29,45

+++++

Tragelaphus scriptus

Bushbuck

Zolo

16

5,48

++++

Cephalophus niger

Black duiker

Gba

13

4,45

+++

Phacochoerus africanus

Common warthog

Luboh

17

5,82

+++

Hyemoschus aquaticus

Water chevrotain

Yiawi

2

0,68

+

Primates

Cercopithecus m. campbelli

Campbell's monkey

Kanh

8

2,74

+++

Cercopithecus petaurista b.

Lesser spot-nose

Golo

4

1,37

+

Cercopithecus diana diana

Diana monkey

Guei

1

0,34

+

Cercocebus atys atys

Mangabey

koin

9

3,08

+++

Boboon

2

0,68

+

Pholidota

Phataginus tricuspis

Tree pangolin

Balakelezeh te

1

0,34

+

Carnivora

Crossarchus obscurus

Cusimanse

Wehin

1

0,34

+

Civettictis civetta

African civet

Goua

4

1,37

++

+ = rare ; ++ = less abundant ; +++ = abundant ; ++++
= very abundant

When considering the list of bushmeat encountered in these restaurants, dry meat
from Guinea are constituted mainly the family of Suidae (warthogs and bush pigs)
dominates with 84% of encounter rate. At a lower rate we have squirrel,
bushbuck, the cane rat, the bay duiker, black duiker and Campbell monkey (figure
4).

Trans-boundary bushmeat commercialization

Liberia – Guinea:
According to the interviewers, cross-border trade in bushmeat exist in the
region N'Diecké and Ganta. Depending on market days of the different towns
in both sides of the border. The meat may come from the other side of the
border. If this is not the sale, it is the purchase of bushmeat by nationals
from the neighboring country who brings this meat back to their countries.
These types of trade occur also in the region of Diaplay, Guinean town
located about 2 km from Liberia, where there is frequent exchange of game
with the localities of Lugbeyee, Bonlah and Bintoh, three towns all
Liberians. These exchanges take place in both directions and sometimes
hunters can cross the border to hunt in "foreign territory". During market
surveys in Boudouma (Guinea), we met a Liberian (from Bonlah) came to buy
smoked meat for the kitchen of a group of workers who should go in his farm.

Guinea – Ivory Coast:
The Guinean and Ivorian of N'Zoo region traded fresh bushmeat. According to
the sub-prefect of N'Zoo and hunters, people of N'Zoo in Guinea, sell or buy
bushmeat at Gbaplay, Yiaplay and Yitiba markets (in Ivory Coast). Here
again, hunters have confirmed that they sometimes cross the border to hunt
in the Ivorian forest.

Ivory Coast – Liberia and Ivory Coast – Guinea:
For security issues, no mission took place in Côte d'Ivoire to confirm or
deny the information from Liberia and Guinea, but we can suppose that
hunters and authorities of this country would confirm all the information
from Liberia and Guinea side. Indeed, according to interviewers from cities
like Foumandou, Guiasso, the meat is sold directly in Ivory Coast, the
vendors of these localities can go way to the hunter camps whom they supply
in ammunition.

Species involved in cross-border trade:
Qualitatively, according to the interviewers, the species encountered in the
transboundary trade between these countries are essentially those commonly
found in the region of the chain of Nimba (see table 2).

Table 2: Species involved in the cross-border
trade according to hunters

Order

Scientific name

English name

French name

Rodentia

Tryonomys swinderianus

Marsh cane rat

Aulacode géant

Artherurus africanus

Brush-tailed porcupine

Arthérure d’Afrique de l’ouest

Cricetomys gambianus

Giant pouched rats

Rat géant de Gambie

Cricetomys emini

Giant pouched rats

Rat géant de Gambie

Euxerus erythropus

Striped ground squirrel

Ecureuil fouisseur

Protoxerus stangeri

African giant squirrel

Ecureuil géant de Stanger

Artiodactyla

Cephalophus dorslis

Bay duiker

Céphalophe bai

Cephalophus maxwelli

Maxwell's duiker

Céphalophe de Maxwell

Tragelaphus scriptus

Bushbuck

Guib harnaché

Cephalophus niger

Black duiker

Céphalophe noir

Syncerus caffer nanus

Forest buffalo

Buffle nain d’Afrique de l’ouest

Phacochoerus africanus

Common warthog

Phacochère

Primates

Cercopithecus m. campbelli

Campbell's monkey

Mone de Campbell

Cercopithecus petaurista b.

Lesser spot-nose

Cercopithèque pétauriste

Cercopithecus diana diana

Diana monkey

Cercopithèque diane

Cercocebus atys atys

Mangabey

Cercocèbe enfumé

Papio anubis

Baboon

Babouin droguera

Perodicticus potto

Potto

Potto de Bosman

Reptlia

Varanus niloticus

Varan

Varan

Python sp

Python

Python

Carnivora

Crossarchus obscurus

Cusimanse

Mangouste brune

Herpestes sanguinea

Slender mangoose

Mangouste rouge

Genetta spp

Genet

genettes

Civettictis civetta

African civet

Goua

Actors in the marketing of bushmeat

The following organization chart (figure 5) summarizes the bushmeat business
organization in northern Nimba County. The
hunter/farmer hunts in protected areas more than in areas to be operated by the
mining company but also in the domains of the village. Wherever is the hunting
area, the purpose of bushmeat is primarily for consumption. The parts that are
intended for marketing are sold either directly to the village market concerned
or the city market or restaurants in the village and the town. These markets
therefore feed the village households and urban households.

The professional hunter is one who only hunts for his livelihood. This hunter
has no other source of income other than hunting, which occupies the greatest
part of his time. That kind of hunter is able to stay for weeks or months in the
forest. There can usually be persons who primarily carry the meat from the
killing place to the slaughter locations and these persons also transport the
meat between the hunting camps and places of sale. In our study only two hunters
have said to be engaged in such hunting. However, the hunting activities
monitored in these project communities allowed us to understand that, even
though some hunters have a higher rate of hunting than others, they cannot be
classified as professional hunters.

Beside the professional hunter we can distinguish hunter/farmer who is actually
farmer who hunt as an additional activity that may increase their source of
income. This applies to different hunters who have voluntarily agreed to work
with our team during this study.
They are not only the vital link in the supply of bushmeat for their communities
but also to the entire Nimba County.

Rural households (town households) comprise the immediate families of hunters
and also their community households. These families are supplied with animal
proteins of different hunting products of the husbands. In addition, the sale of
some parts of the bushmeat helps these families cope with the daily expenses of
the household. Beyond his family, the hunter is not only the supplier of animal
protein in his community but also neighbouring communities. Information will be
provided on the share occupied by the purchase of bushmeat in the weekly
expenditures of these households.

Although most of the time hunters or their family members are responsible for
selling the game at the different markets (of the town or city), there are
intermediaries between hunters and city markets. These intermediaries, either
women or men are mostly active during the moments before the market days of
city.

This activity, as regards to Yekepa and Sanniquellie markets, is exclusive to
women. There are two vendors in Yekepa and five in Sanniquellie that were
identified and agreed to comply with our survey and allowed us to perform
qualitative inventories and biopsy samples.

Although it was not planned to take into account restaurants in the first phase
of the study, we discussed with several restaurant owners to get an idea of the
animals they buy for their restaurants.
These restaurants exist in towns and in cities. During the second phase
restaurants have been surveyed in Yekepa.

Urban Households

Urban households which we have not investigated also consume bushmeat. This
could be seen through the crowd which is observed around the bushmeat tables
during f our weekly visits to Sanniquellie market. In addition, the vendors
confirmed the successfulness of their business, which, in fact, is their only
source of income. Households can buy whole legs or shoulders (generally from 400
LD) for those with moderate standards of living.
For others they are options like 50 LD (0.7 USD).

Discussion

Bushmeat commercialization in northern Nimba County

The majority of persons involved in the bushmeat business derive additional
revenue from the exploitation of wildlife and bushmeat
is particularly valuable to rural communities. It provides cash for the purchase
of household supplies and school fees, and is essential to meeting protein
needs. Recent research is reviewed which illustrates the importance of bushmeat
to the livelihoods of the poor. This perspective is also indicated when
considering issues of forest governance. On the one hand, instruments such as
timber certification and associated codes of conduct need to take account of key
livelihoods concerns. On the other, bushmeat management could support and
leverage wider improvements in the quality of forest governance (Brown and
Williams 2003). In the Nimba County, the
hunter/farmers, intermediaries and other actors, the managers of restaurants and
sellers, derive their main income and, therefore, are employed at least in the
informal sector. Other sectors like manufacturing and sale of hunting tools,
handicrafts, marketing of medicinal products based on wildlife have also owe
their prosperity to the bushmeat industry.

Unofficial channels are organized to carry the meat from production areas to the
rural and urban centres. In Nimba County, this commercialization of hunting
products involves a number of actors: hunters, whole sellers and retailers and
managers of restaurants. Indeed, the products of hunting not consumed by the
families of the hunters are sold in the town. The bushmeat is brought to the
town as fresh meat or smoked. This hunting booty is generally sold to any
customer. However, a network of permanent
contacts is created with traders moving into the towns for the local purchase of
meat. Anstey
(1991) estimated that the sale of this meat to represent an average income of
US$ 27 per hunter per month. In this area of extreme poverty, where the average
town person makes less than US$ 0.50/day, bushmeat thus represents a significant
source of cash income. And with one study estimating that hunters took 16.5 kg
of meat per month, bushmeat is also an important protein source for hunters and
their families. This bushmeat is a part of nearly every urban Liberian’s
lifestyle, with an overwhelming 97% reporting that they eat it (Anstey 1991).

In Nimba County, prices of the meat are set by the hunter as a function of the
hunting moment, the season, the price of ammunition and method of sale (whole or
pieces). These prices are higher in low-season hunting (rainy season in Nimba
County) and is also the period of intensive fieldwork. According to Caspary
(2000 and 2001), the transport of bushmeat to points of sale always uses the
same means from the bike to the plane. In Nimba County, the means of transport
for bushmeat are composed primarily of bicycle, motorcycle and use of taxis or
minibus. In addition, some hunters carry their hunting booties on foot to the
place of sale. Walking, cycling and motorcycling allow the hunter/farmer to
bring the products of hunting into the town but also to carry it to urban
centres. However,
withthe rehabilitation of therailway tothe needs of theArcelorMittal
company,it is feared that
this way to be also used for
bushmeat transportation from northernNimba County tocities insouth of the country.
There is also an international component to the trade. Anecdotal data indicates
substantial cross-border trade to Ivory Coast. With much higher market prices,
there is a considerable incentive for hunters and marketers to illegally
transport their goods across the border. This may also be true of trade to other
countries within West Africa.

Trans-boundary bushmeat trade in northern Nimba Country

It is important to note that cross-border trades in bushmeat among the three
countries that share the Nimba chain already exist before the mining operations
of AML. The sale of bushmeat in markets is devoted to women and this business is
in most cases the only source of income for these women. The acquisition of the
meat is done directly between the hunter (or a parent they send) and the seller.
However, in some cases, there is the intervention of intermediaries (male or
female) who purchase the game with hunters in the various towns before reselling
them to vendors in major cities during market days.

Some women work as wholesalers by buying fresh meat with hunters and
intermediaries before supplying the different markets and restaurants of Guinea.
These animals slaughtered from border towns located in Guinea, Liberia or in
Ivory Coast and are most often composed of Rodents, Ungulates, Carnivores and
Primates. Also, some exchanges happen almost daily but on a small scale,
especially for direct consumption, between the towns of the immediate side of
the border lines. For the smoked meat (Cocopah), the center of trade in
South-Eastern Guinea is Nzérékoré town. This town has two market days in a week.
A regular market day (Wednesday) and a special bushmeat market day (Thursday).
During this day you can see the fresh bushmeat from the wholesalers, hunters or
their parents and intermediaries. But it is mainly the trucks loaded with smoked
meat from Upper Guinea or Senegal that impress most of the times. A dozen
warehouses of smoked meat are available in the market and receive the contents
of these trucks. Ordinary days, these stores supply the surrounding cities and
towns, and also cities and towns of Liberian like Yekepa, Sanniquellie, Ganta,
Bonlah ... In fact, Cocopah vendors from Liberia purchase this meat either
directly in N'Zérékoré or in Guinea towns closest to the border that also
purchase the meat at N'Zérékoré market.

According
to the Convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and
flora meeting held in Kenya in 2000, casesofcross-bordertradein bushmeat are mentioned in
several studies.However, a distinction
is made betweeninter-continentaldimensionsandlocal issuesand sub-regional.
According to the sameauthor
Intercontinental trade has only limited cultural and free-trade justifications,
and none at all as regards poverty (bushmeat from developing countries is a
luxury item on western markets). In Local and sub-regional trade, the equity and
poverty dimensions are significant, and the cultural considerations need to be
treated sensitively. Crossborder issues often have significant social
dimensions, and governments may have limited control over the movement of goods.
The potential for reduction in local cross-border trade in the short-term is
likely to be very limited

Transportation of the meat across the country and borders is often in secret but
sometimes the complicity of agents favors the movement by asking to the seller
to pay taxes. Notes of recommendations are sometimes provided to certain vendors
by the authorities. When faced with a control, vendors have just to show the
letters that can enable them to pay less or pay nothing.

Acknowledgement

We would
like to thank Conservation International-Liberia for its role in coordination.
We acknowledge the special contributions of the communities. We extend
appreciation to ArcelorMittal Liberia (AML), the funder and commissioner of this
initiative. Many thanks to SYLVATROP as implementing the study specially it
President. We would also like to emphasize the importance of the positive
working relationship we have with the Forestry Development Authority (FDA).